The information that we provide is for UK passport holders. A passport with 6 months remaining validity at the end of your stay is generally required, and you should have at least 2 blank pages for each country that you visit.

It is your responsibility to ensure that you have the correct travel documents and visas for your holiday. Please ensure that you check for the latest advice before travel. For the most up to date information on entry requirements, please visit the UK Government website.

If you are travelling via India (Delhi or Calcutta) to your destination you may also require a visa for India. This may apply even if you are not leaving the airport unless your baggage has been checked all the way through to your destination. Generally, if you use the same carrier for both legs of your journey, you will not need an India Visa. Please download the detailed information document: Visa PDF India.

Visa Nepal

All nationalities require a visa. The visa process is partly automated and the fee is $30 for 15 days, $50 for 30 days, $125 for 90 days. The visa is FREE for children under 10 years. The visa allows multiple re-entry. Payment must be made in cash and USD, GBP or Euros are accepted.

Part of this on-arrival visa process involves filling in a ‘Tourist Visa Application Form’ and you can simplify the procedure at Kathmandu Airport by filling this form in online (within 15 days of travelling) at this link. This generates a receipt which you present (hard copy or saved on your phone) on arrival. This should allow you to go straight to the cashier to pay for your visa and has the potential to save you time in the visa queue.

Whilst these are not now needed for the visa process, we recommend that you travel with at least 2 spare passport photographs.

Trekking Permits – what do we need from you ?

Mount Everest Marathon (MEM). Everest Monasteries Trek (EVP). Ganesh Himal Panorama Trek (GHP). Lamjung Himal Trek (LHT). Middle Hills Arun River to Dudh Kosi (MHT). Highlights of Dolpo - Tarap to Phoksumdo (DNB). Dolpo to Mugu Trek (DTM).  Around Manaslu Trek (MAN).

For each of these holidays, we need your passport details and we need to send through to Nepal ahead of your departure a scan of the information pages of your passport and a scan of a passport-style photograph of yourself. Please send these scans to us once your holiday is guaranteed.

In addition, for Conservation Area treks and other treks requiring Special Permits – DNB, DTM, MAN – you will be required on arrival in Kathmandu to provide your passport (with your visa) for presentation at the Nepal Tourism Board. Your passport will be returned to you by your tour leader at dinner.

If you have a severe allergy please inform the KE office before you travel. We will do all we can to help, but we cannot guarantee an allergy free environment on KE trips. You will need to carry your own treatment for the allergy with you, as 'adrenaline auto-injectors' are not carried as standard by KE leaders and staff. You should inform your leader on arrival of your allergy, and let them know where you keep your adrenaline pen.

Dengue fever is a known risk in places visited. It is a tropical viral disease spread by daytime biting mosquitoes. There is currently no vaccine or prophylaxis available and therefore the best form of prevention is to avoid being bitten. We recommend you take precautions to avoid mosquito bites.

Vaccinations

You should contact your doctor or travel clinic to check whether you require any specific vaccinations or other preventive measures. You should be up to date with routine courses and boosters as recommended in the UK e.g. diphtheria-tetanus-polio and measles-mumps-rubella, along with hepatitis A and typhoid.

Malarial prophylaxis is not usually required for trips in the mountains, however if you are visiting rural and remote low lying areas then they might be necessary.

On holidays to more remote areas you should also have a dentist check up. A good online resource is Travel Health Pro.

You should attend your own doctor and dentist for a check-up. Your doctor will have access to the most up to date information on the required vaccinations for the country you are visiting. In general we recommend vaccinations against the following: Polio, Tetanus, Typhoid, Hepatitis ‘A’. Malarial prophylaxis is not recommended for this trip unless you intend to visit the Terrai region of Nepal (such as during an extension to Chitwan National Park). A very good online resource is the UK National Health Travellers website at fitfortravel.nhs.uk

The unit of currency in Nepal is the Nepalese Rupee.

It makes a lot of sense to spend some time before coming on a trekking holiday getting some additional exercise. The fitter you are, after all, the more enjoyable you will find the experience. Although the trekking on this trip is not difficult or sustained, hiking at altitude is more demanding than similar terrain at lower elevations. We suggest that you adopt a weekly exercise regime leading up to your trip. Regular hiking in hill country is the best training but any regular exercise such as jogging, squash and swimming is also good for developing cardio vascular fitness and stamina. Before coming on the trip we recommend that you make time for some longer walks in hilly country. It is also a good idea to do some reading about the culture of Nepal and of the Sherpa people who live in the Everest region. There are many books on this subject and some are listed opposite.

October-December and March-May are usually considered the best times to visit Nepal. These months either side of the monsoon are neither too hot nor too cold, offering the best conditions for trekking. At these times you can expect daytime temperatures in the range of 15 - 20 degrees C and feeling quite hot in the mid-day sun. Nightime temperatures outside the lodges may drop to around freezing especially higher up. From January to early April the Everest region is much quieter and although a little colder during the evening and with the possibility of encountering snow, this is a great time to be in the Khumbu if you want to get away from the crowds. Skies are usually clear and bright at this time of the year and it remains warm in the middle of the day. It should always be noted that this is a mountain environment and short-lived storms can occur at any time of the year.

As a reputable tour operator, KE supports the British Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office's ‘Travel Aware’ campaign to enable British citizens to prepare for their journeys overseas. The 'Travel Aware' website provides a single, authoritative source of advice for all kinds of travellers and we recommend that before travel, all KE clients visit the official UK Government website at travelaware.campaign.gov.uk and read the FCDO Travel Advice for their chosen destination. North Americans can also check out the U.S. Department of State website: www.travel.state.gov for essential travel advice and tips.

KE treat the safety and security of all clients as the most important aspect of any trip we organise. We would not run any trip that we did not consider reasonably safe.  Should the FCDO advise against travel for any reason, we will contact everyone booked to travel to discuss the situation.  We receive regular updates directly from the FCDO and are in constant touch with our contacts on the ground.  If you have any questions about government travel advice, please call our office.

KE do not encourage the use of single use plastic items. We are ensuring that our agents all over the world are working together to reduce the problem and educate those around them. We are leading by example in our KE office by reducing our plastic use.

• Lonely Planet Guide to Nepal. Lonely Planet

• Rough Guide to Nepal. Rough Guides

• Trekking and Climbing in Nepal. Steve Razzetti

• Everest: A Trekkers Guide. Kev Reynolds. Cicerone

• Into Thin Air. Jon Krakauer

• The Climb. Anatoli Boukreev

• The Ascent of Everest. John Hunt & Edmund Hillary

• Sherpas & Himalayan Mountaineering. Sherry Ortner

• A History of Nepal. John Whelpton

• Field Guide to Birds of the Himalayas. Bikram Grewal

• Everest the Old Way. John Driskell

Everest Base Camp. 1: 50,000 Nepa / National Geographic Maps

This map which is a collaboration between National Geographic and the long established Nepal publisher, Nepa Maps, is probably the best for this trek showing the trekking routes from Lukla to Everest Base Camp. It has relief shading and a 40m. contour interval. Khumbu Himal. 1: 50,000 Schneider Maps. Nelles Verlag This is a high quality map with a 40 metre contour interval and relief shading which also distinguishes between ice-walls, rock, scree and moraine. This map, once the best available, has been largely superseded by the NG/Nepa map, but it is still a beautiful map to own. Note: All clients will be given a free trekking map in Kathmandu before the start of their trek.

It is an essential condition of joining a holiday with KE Adventure Travel that you have a valid travel insurance policy to cover the cost of medical treatment and to protect the value of your holiday in the event of cancellation.  When taking out insurance please ensure the policy you choose covers you for the activities and altitude included in your itinerary.

For appropriate insurance cover we recommend Campbell Irvine Direct.  Please go to our Travel Insurance page for further information and to get a quote.

The following checklist should help you with your packing. As a general rule, you should always try to keep the weight of your equipment to a minimum. The packed weight of your kit bag while trekking should be no more than 15 kgs.  It is possible to leave clothes or other items not required on trek at the group hotel.

You must bring the following items:

• Hiking boots

• Trekking trousers
  

• Waterproof overtrousers
  

• Baselayer shirts

• Casual shirt and/or T-shirts

• Fleece jacket or warm jumper

• Waterproof jacket

• Sunhat

• Warm hat

• Sunglasses

• Warm gloves or mittens

• Headtorch and spare batteries

• Sun protection (including total bloc for lips, nose etc.)

• Water bottles 1 Litre x1 (we encourage re-filling water bottles rather than single use plastic)
  

• Water purification tablets

• Washbag and toiletries

• Toilet paper (you can also buy this in the lodges if necessary)

• Antibacterial handwash

• Small towel

• Selection of dry bags (to keep your kit bag contents dry)

• Small padlock (to lock your kit bag)

• Daypack 25 litres

• Sleeping bag (comfort rated -5°C) for December to Febuary departures - comfort rated -10°C*
  

• Warm jacket (down)*

• Basic First Aid Kit including:  antiseptic cream, throat lozenges, diarrhoea treatment (Imodium), painkillers, plasters and blister treatment, insect repellent, and re-hydration salts (Dioralite). Glucose tablets and multi-vitamin tablets.

The following items are optional:

• Trekking poles

• Trainers or similar for camp use

• Shorts

• Thermal baselayer - leggings

• Sleeping bag liner

• Pillowcase

• Scarf or buff

• Swimwear (for the hotel pool in Kathmandu)

• Ear plugs (particularly if you are not the one snoring)

• Travel clothes

• Camera

• Pen-knife (remember to pack sharp objects in hold baggage)

• Repair kit – (eg. needle, thread, duct tape)

• Reusable cloth bag for shopping (to avoid plastic bags)

Notes:

*FREE sleeping bag and down jacket hire is included in your KE holiday booking on request.

Please make all requests at least 6 weeks prior to the trip departure date. Please note all hire / rental equipment is issued in Kathmandu. Please remember to allow room in your kit bag for these items.
 
The Nepalese are still traditional and conservative in the way they dress. Therefore to avoid embarrassment on both sides we recommend that you respect this and do not wear revealing clothing or sleeveless tops while visiting Nepal. Shorts are acceptable, but they should reach to just above the knee and be modest and for women it is preferable to wear trousers or a long skirt.

Many of the equipment items listed above are available from Cotswold Outdoor - our 'Official Recommended Outdoor Retailer'. When you book a holiday with KE you will receive a 12.5% discount with Cotswold Outdoor, Snow+Rock and Runners Need. The discount code can be downloaded from your MyKE account and you can use this code at the checkout, either in store or online.